Hiperbaric highlights HIP’s increasing importance in Additive Manufacturing

November 18, 2022

Components in a variety of sectors undergo Hot Isostatic Pressing post-processing as AM use grows (Courtesy Hiperbaric)
Components in a variety of sectors undergo Hot Isostatic Pressing post-processing as AM use grows (Courtesy Hiperbaric)

Hiperbaric, Burgos, Spain, designs, manufactures and markets high-pressure industrial technology and equipment. With an increasing interest from the Additive Manufacturing sector, the company is seeing demand grow for its Hot Isostatic Press units, and reports it is expecting to produce between three and five HIP units per year from 2024 to 2027.

This level of sales would represent more than 6% of the company’s income, a figure that the company believes will equate to over €10 million in annual sales from 2027 onwards.

In 2021, Hiperbaric opened a HIP Innovation Center, the first such facility in southern Europe where users can test new material developments using HIP and work on the opportunities that this technology brings to Additive Manufacturing.

Hiperbaric opened a HIP Innovation Center in 2021 (Courtesy Hiperbaric)
Hiperbaric opened a HIP Innovation Center in 2021 (Courtesy Hiperbaric)

Hiperbaric not only makes HIP machines for use by additive manufacturers, it is also using Additive Manufacturing to produce parts for the HIP machines. “Because we are so involved in the world of HIP and Additive Manufacturing, we have become a user of 3D printing to make our HIP equipment,” explained Rubén García, HIP Project Manager at Hiperbaric. “In the HIP machine we are building now, we have been able to design an Additive Manufacturing heat exchanger that cools the contents of the load very quickly.”

“3D printing allows you to optimise parts in such a way that, with 60% of the weight, they give you the same function. In addition, it also reduces waste because you only use the precise material to manufacture the part,” García added.

Hiperbaric’s knowledge, developed over the past twenty years, has enabled the company to design and develop Hot Isostatic Pressing technology in the framework of different research projects. One of these is the €2.09 million SmartMat project for research into advanced material production, with another the XtremHIP for the design of high-performance HIP equipment. Both projects have been financed by the Institute for Business Competitiveness (ICE), of the Castilla y León Regional Government, and the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) – A way of doing Europe.

One growing market for HIP technology is for medical implants, explains Hiperbaric. This sector benefits from the design freedom offered by AM, with the mechanical properties provided by HIP. This is the case of Optimus 3D, an AM engineering company which uses Hiperbaric’s HIP technology to eliminate internal defects and pores that could lead to the appearance and propagation of cracks that would eventually cause an implant to break.

www.hiperbaric.com

In the latest issue of Metal AM magazine

Download PDF
 

Extensive AM industry news coverage, as well as the following exclusive deep-dive articles:

  • Metal powders in Additive Manufacturing: An exploration of sustainable production, usage and recycling
  • Inside Wayland Additive: How innovation in electron beam PBF is opening new markets for AM
  • An end-to-end production case study: Leveraging data-driven machine learning and autonomous process control in AM
  • Consolidation, competition, and the cost of certification: Insight from New York’s AM Strategies 2024
  • Scandium’s impact on the Additive Manufacturing of aluminium alloys
  • AM for medical implants: An analysis of the impact of powder reuse in Powder Bed Fusion

The world of metal AM to your inbox

Don't miss any new issue of Metal AM magazine, and get the latest industry news. Sign up to our twice weekly newsletter.

Sign up

Discover our magazine archive…

The free to access Metal Additive Manufacturing magazine archive offers unparalleled insight into the world of metal Additive Manufacturing from a commercial and technological perspective through:

  • Reports on visits to leading metal AM part manufacturers and industry suppliers
  • Articles on technology and application trends
  • Information on materials developments
  • Reviews of key technical presentations from the international conference circuit
  • International industry news

All past issues are available to download as free PDFs or view in your browser.

Browse the archive

Looking for AM machines, metal powders or part manufacturing services?

Discover suppliers of these and more in our comprehensive advertisers’ index and buyer’s guide, available in the back of Metal AM magazine.

  • AM machines
  • Process monitoring & calibration
  • Heat treatment & sintering
  • HIP systems & services
  • Pre- & post-processing technology
  • Powders, powder production and analysis
  • Part manufacturers
  • Consulting, training & market data
View online
Share via
Copy link
Powered by Social Snap